Employers Encouraged to Consider Supplemental H-2B Allocation in Filling Positions

Following up on a temporary final rule issued on May 25, 2021, that made available an additional 22,000 H-2B temporary nonagricultural guest worker visas for fiscal year 2021 to employers who are likely to suffer irreparable harm without the additional workers, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said on June 24, 2021, that it “strongly encourages qualified U.S. employers to consider” the supplemental allocation of 6,000 visas initially reserved for nationals of Northern Triangle countries (Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala) in filling positions for which they cannot find qualified and available U.S. workers.

If by July 8, 2021, fewer than 6,000 beneficiaries are requested toward the visas initially set aside for Northern Triangle countries, USCIS will announce by July 23 that the unused visas will be made available to employers “regardless of the beneficiary’s country of nationality, subject to the returning worker requirement.”

USCIS announced the information above in an email broadcast on June 24, 2021.

Related Link:

• “Cap Reached for Additional Returning Worker H-2B Visas for FY 2021,” June 3, 2021